Chapter 10: Unmasking the Villain
Without waiting for permission, Marcus quickly plugged his workstation into the main presentation screen mounted on the wall. Within seconds, the high-definition display flickered to life, showing the clear, timestamped security footage from the hotel corridor.
The entire board watched in stunned silence as the video played: Julian handing the blue velvet box to the courier, receiving a folded receipt, and then turning back toward the ballroom with a calculated, predatory look on his face.
“That video is a fake!” Julian shouted, slamming his hands onto the table as he stood up, his eyes wild. “She fabricated it! She’s trying to destroy me because I refused to give her a settlement!”
“We also have the banking records, Mr. Sterling,” Sarah Vance interjected smoothly, handing folders to every board member at the table. “These documents show forty-two illegal wire transfers from the Sterling Charitable Foundation directly to Vance Capital offshore gambling accounts—totaling $4.2 million. The sapphire ring was given as physical collateral to cover your missed interest payment on Saturday night.”
The board members began frantically skimming through the financial documents, gasping in utter shock. Richard Sterling stared at the papers in his hands, his face turning an ash-gray color. He looked at his son, seeing him clearly for the first time—not as a distinguished heir, but as a deceitful, desperate criminal.
“Julian...” Richard whispered, his voice trembling with heartbreak and fury. “Is this true?”
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Julian looked around the room. Every eye was fixed on him with disgust and horror. The polite facade he had maintained his entire life shattered into pieces. “They were going to ruin me, Dad!” he stammered, his voice cracking. “I just needed time!”
“You smashed a podium and wounded an eight-year-old child to cover your tracks,” Clara said, stepping closer to him, her eyes burning with righteous truth. “You called her a thief in front of the world. But the only thief in this room is you.”
